The week in Bentos : May 28 - May 31 2014

Here I am again, with a lapse of a few weeks in between. I have noticed that although I religiously click pictures for all of the lunches that I pack for LG7, I don't feel the same compulsion to post them online. I think its because I feel the lack of new and varied recipes or lunch ideas. Thankfully this coming week is the last week of school in my neck of the woods. Summer break is just around the corner ! I have almost 3 months to come up with a plethora of new and exciting lunch recipes and ideas !!

In any case, here were the lunches for last week :

 
On Tuesday, I packed a simple PB and J sandwich, strawberries with a froggie pick and stir fried potatoes with an airplane pick.


 
On Wednesday , I made Annie's Mac and Cheese, strawberries and cheese crackers.


 
On Thursday, I packed LG7 a homemade banana waffle sandwich, raspberries, carrot sticks and store bought crackers.


 
On Friday, I made a quick pasta dish with peas and nutritional yeast, sliced up some strawberries, added some raspberries, a chocolate chip cookie and some cheese crackers.

That was it for this week, since Monday was a holiday on account of Memorial Day.
Are your children already home for the summer or do you have another week to go ?
Its started getting hotter and hotter here in North Dallas and I am looking forward to bringing out my ice cream maker !
Have a great week !

The Week in Bentos - May 05 : May 09 2014

Did you all have a good weekend ? Was it filled to the brim with fun activities for the entire family, or did you finally get to relax for a bit and unwind from a week's worth of stress and busyness ? Did you celebrate the mothers in your lives and if you are a mother, did you get to spend the day in a special way ?
I went out to lunch with my guys and had fun chatting and eating good food ! By the way, did you know that Mother's Day was first celebrated way back in 1908 when a woman named Anna Jarvis held a memorial for her mother, who had been a peace activist and had nursed wounded soldiers in the Civil war. Anna wanted to honor her mother and mothers around the world because " [a mother ] is the one person who has done more for you than any one else in the world !" Isn't that a lovely thought ? Maybe I am biased, but I think mothers are the loveliest of beings in this world :)
On other mundane matters, I am slightly late with last week's post. Here are the lunches that we made :

 
On Monday, we had an odd mix of items for lunch. I made some chow mein noodles and a pancake sandwich with peanut butter and jelly, apple slices and a chocolate chip cookie.

 
On Tuesday, I made dosa rollups ( rice and lentil crepes, slathered with PB and grape jelly), cheese crackers, carrot sticks and apple slices.

 
On Wednesday, lunch consisted of avocado sandwiches, olives and strawberries.

On Thursday, I made Mac and Cheese and paired it up with a side container of apples and strawberries.
I didnt have time to take a picture ! 

 
On Friday, I made cheese toasts, with whole wheat bread slices, tomato ketchup, sliced olives and cheddar cheese, apples and strawberries and a sandwich cookie.

LG7 has started playing basketball and I have to start increasing the calories he consumes, both quantity and quality..Hopefully the lunches in the coming weeks will reflect that ! Check back in !

Have a great week and keep packing those nutritious lunches :)

The Week in Bentos : Apr 21 2014 - Apr 25 2014

The past few weeks have gone by in a blur. Even though each day seems interminable, the weeks themselves seem to run by so fast. This weekend, we headed north to the Eisenhower State park for a short camping trip with close friends and had a really nice time. The pleasure of like minded company, the satiety provided by delicious home cooked food and the serenity afforded by the peaceful green surroundings have recharged us for the weeks ahead !
Here were last week's lunches -


 
On Monday, lunch was Annie's organic mac and Cheese, steamed broccoli and red grapes.

 
On Tuesday, LG7 took a peanut butter strawberry jelly sandwich, strawberries, caramel rice cake and a couple of vanilla cream cookies.

 
On Wednesday, the EasyLunchBox had tri color penne pasta in tomato sauce, apples, carrot slices, potato fry and a couple of pretzel thins. Lesson learned from this lunch is - if you pack hot or warm food with crispy items like pretzel thins, they get soggy when the lid is closed and hence come back uneaten !!

 
On Thursday, I made spicy vermicelli noodles, apple slices, almonds and raisins and a coconut shortbread cookie.

 
On Friday, I packed a couple of cheese toasts, apple slices and whole grain crackers spread with peanut butter.

Hope you all have had a great fun filled or relaxing weekend. have a great week ahead and keep packing healthy lunches !

 

The Week in Bentos : Mar 24 - Mar 28 2014

The past few weeks have gotten away from me again...Weekdays are hectic enough...I dont seem to have enough hours on the weekends either! But I do get a lot of chores and a lot of baking and prepping over the weekend, so I am satisfied with that. I just have to find a little time to finish writing the posts !

 
 On Monday, lunch consisted of chocolate chip waffles, cheese slices, apples and blackberries and carrot sticks.
 
 
On Tuesday, LG7 asked for mac and cheese. So along with that, he got apple slices, blackberries, carrot sticks and a few sugar snap peas.

 
On Wednesday, I gave a grilled cheese sandwich, blackberries and a peanut butter cracker sandwich.

 
On Thursday, lunch consisted of tortilla rolls, cheese slices, olives, apples and blackberries, carrot sticks and sugar snap peas.

 
On Friday, I made tri-colored rotini pasta, olives, multigrain crackers, apples and some granola.

Since I started working, my older son has started attending an afterschool program at his school, conducted by the YMCA. Although they do provide him with a snack, I am not very happy with the kind of snacks they provide, so I have started giving LG7 an additional snack that he can choose to eat if he is hungry.
Some of the things that I give him are - apple slices, sliced or chopped fruits, sandwiches, crackers and dry cereal, trail mix.
What are some things that you give your kids in their snack box ?

The Week in Bentos : Mar 17 - Mar 21 2014

So, I am into my fourth week of full time employment and things are kind of settling into a routine that works for us..kind of ...most of the days :) My admiration for working women everywhere, which was generally high to begin with, has reached the zenith now !! This includes all the stay at home moms who manage everything at home and multitask like its nobody's business !

Now, getting down to business, this is what we had for lunch last week :)






On Monday, I packed Mac and Cheese in a large silicone cup, a half peanut butter and grape jelly sandwich, apple slices and a Biscoff cookie for a treat.


 
On Tuesday, lunch consisted of a grilled cheese sandwiches, apple slices and some Frito corn chips.

 
On Wednesday, it was a peanut butter jelly sandwich again, with some veggie pasta salad, apple slices, strawberries and a cookie.


 On Thursday, I made Mac and Cheese again with some steamed broccoli drizzled with a little peanut butter. Apple slices and some chips and a cookie completed the lunch.


 
This is the exact same lunch that I packed for my 3 year old which he eats at his Montessori. I am not going to start posting the lunches that I pack for him but I just wanted to show off the cute 4 compartment Lock and Lock lunch box that I got for him :-) LG3 loves it, more food fits into it and he eats all of it with pleasure!

 
On Friday, I packed spicy Indian vermicelli noodles, apple slices, a Biscoff cookie and some potato chips.
Now I very rarely buy chips as a snack, but we happened to have some at home this week and so I let the kids have some with their lunch. Everything in moderation, thats what I say !

Hope you are seeing signs of the beginning of Spring and here's looking forward to the wonderful weather that's just around the corner!! Have a great week !

The Week in Bentos : Mar 03 - Mar 07 2014

So, Spring Break is here and that tells me that the end of this academic year is almost here..there are still more than 3 months to go...true, but I am also pretty certain that those three months are going to zip by very fast ! News of the week is that after exactly 3 years, I am back at work..I started my new job last week and its been quite hectic, to say the least..We are all still trying to come to a routine that is more organized and that will let us get through the day without feeling breathless at the end of it :)


 
On Monday, LG7 took a grilled peanut butter and apple sandwich, a homemade banana muffin, pineapples and strawberries.



 
On Tuesday, lunch consisted of spicy vermicelli noodles with peanuts and peas, cheddar cheese cubes, crackers, apples and strawberries.


 
On Wednesday, I packed two whole wheat tortilla rollups with peanut butter and jelly, cheese slices, crackers, pineapples and apple slices.

 
On Thursday, I packed a PB and J sandwich on whole wheat bread, a piece of chocolate brownie bar, some veggie chips and strawberries.

I seem to have forgotten to click a picture of Friday's lunch !
Trying to get everybody showered and ready and 4 lunches packed by 8.00 am will do that to you !
I hope to continue jotting down our lunch adventures. Maybe I could even share my own lunches once in a while, if they seem interesting. Only time will tell !
Hope you are having a wonderful Spring Break!

The Week in Bentos : Feb 24 - Feb 28

The weather gods are playing again - After a beautiful Saturday with temperatures at a pleasant 75, its back to 20 degrees on Monday. There was freezing rain and snow flurries, slick roads and predictably, closed schools in a city unused to such drastic vagaries of nature !
So housebound we are , yet again :)

Last week, we had a good lunch week.


 
On Monday, LG7 took a peanut butter and jelly sandwich on wheat buns, a homemade oatmeal pumpkin bar, a cutie orange and apple slices.


 
On Tuesday, lunch was rotini pasta with store bought marinara sauce, cheddar cheese cubes, apple slices and another piece of the oatmeal chocolate chip pumpkin bar. Some of the pasta came back home because " he was busy talking to his friend and didnt have time to finish his lunch. " That earned him a lecture !

 
On Wednesday, I made quesadillas with chopped broccoli, crumbled paneer and shredded cheddar. It was accompanied by ketchup, some potato chips , an orange and strawberries.

 
On Thursday, LG7 got a grilled cheese sandwich, goldfish, oranges and strawberries.

LG7 went on  a field trip on Friday with his class and was required to take a packed lunch which could be disposed. So that translated into another sandwich, with some strawberries and goldfish crackers in ziploc bags and a small bottle of water. Basically a repeat of Thursday.

Overall, it was a good week.
Hope you stay warm and have a wonderful week ahead !!

The Week in Bentos : Feb 17 - Feb 21

Irrespective of whether my weekend has been hectic ( filled with outside activities, cooking and baking sprees ) or sedentary , the end of said weekend always comes as a surprise. As in "Is it Sunday night already ? Where did my weekend go ? " Does it ever happen to you ? Its the same right now, sitting as I am on my sofa at 9.45 pm on a Sunday night, surrounded by silence and kept company only by the relentless ticking of the clock :)
Wonder what the week ahead has in store for me !!
Here are the lunches that we packed this past week.

On Monday, LG7 had a holiday from school on account of President's Day. So, no bento lunch packed that day. Instead, we had a quiet day at home and celebrated LG3's third birthday at home by baking a simple eggless chocolate cake. LG3 was, unfortunately a little sick, so it was a pretty quiet affair.


 
On Tuesday, LG7 took a waffle sandwich with almond butter and jelly, carrot sticks, strawberries and blackberries and a piece of chocolate cake for a treat.

 
On Wednesday, I tried a pasta recipe with a white sauce, an orange, apple slice and carrot sticks. For some reason, LG7 didnt like the white sauce and brought back almost half the pasta back. I will have to tinker with the sauce recipe to get it to his liking.

 
On Thursday, the Easy Lunch Box contained spinach and corn quesadillas with ketchup, an orange, strawberries and a chocolate chip cookie.


 
On Friday, as per request, I sent Annie's Mac and cheese, carrot sticks, strawberries and an orange and heaved a sigh of relief when everything came back empty.

I have been observing that LG7 is almost emptying the contents of both his water bottles. Thats probably a sign that winter is bidding adieu !

Hope you have a wonderful week ahead !

The Week in Bentos : Feb 10 - Feb 14 2014

Winter seems to be releasing its hold on our area slowly..Its getting warmer day by day and we are definitely looking forward to spring and summer. I need to get some of my seeds started. Although my vegetable garden is by on means on a large scale, I still look forward to all the activities associated with the garden !

I tried a few new things last week in the lunchboxes and they were all pretty successful.
So here goes:


 
On Monday, I made cheese Uttappa ( savory rice and lentil pancakes) with ketchup, leftover fried potatoes and strawberries.

 
On Tuesday, I made toasted sandwiches with a savory avocado filling. I also included carrot sticks and orange segments. I am happy that I have been able to wean LG7 slightly from his peanut butter fixation !

 
On Wednesday, I packed Mac and Cheese in the thermal jar, an oatmeal chocolate chip bar and fresh mixed berries.

 
On Thursday, it was mixed pasta again in a light butter sauce, with a cutie orange, blackberries and the oatmeal bar for a treat.

 
On Friday, I made grilled sandwiches with almond butter and apple slices, orange , strawberries and dried fruits and almonds. I added a heart pick as a nod to Valentine's Day !
I attended LG7's class party and thoroughly enjoyed myself, watching LG7 interact with his friends.

Hope you had a wonderful week too !
 

The Week in Bentos : Feb 3 - Feb 7

I am getting progressively later and later on my weekly Bento posts ! Do you ever get the feeling that the day just gets away from you sometimes ? I definitely have more time now than I did a few weeks ago, because my younger son LG3 has started attending preschool full time. But even then, the hours seem to fill up with chores and tasks of all sorts ! The only thing left to do, is to allocate times for specific tasks for the entire week and be slightly more organized than I am at the time. I will let you all know how that works out !

 
On Monday, LG7 got whole wheat noodles with spinach and corn in a light tomato sauce with nutritional yeast, blackberries and a chocolate chip cookie for a treat.


 
On Tuesday, the lunch box contained sandwiches made with whole wheat bread and avocado filling, one half toasted and one un-toasted  as requested :) , apples and strawberries and a cookie.

 
On Wednesday,  I packed corn and spinach quesadillas with ketchup (in the small white box), carrot sticks and some cake cubes.

 
On Thursday,  lunch consisted of toasted peanut butter and apple sandwiches, homemade semolina cake, cantaloupe and strawberries and dried fruits and almonds.

 
On Friday, I packed lunch in the 2-tier bento box. The bigger container contained spicy vermicelli noodles and the smaller one had apples, strawberries and blackberries.

What are your plans for Valentine's Day ? Although we dont celebrate it in any special way, it is impossible to miss the hype and hoopla surrounding this day all around you ! My children also celebrate it in school and this year I sent cute cards and non-candy treats like tops and stencils.
You dont really need a special day to tell your loved ones or show them that you care, but tell them today anyway !
Have a sweet Valentine's Day !!

The Week in Bentos - Jan 27 : Jan 31 2014

As I sit here, typing away at my keyboard, it is snowing softly outside. It feels as if we are gently being blanketed by a white fluffy swirling cloud. Although it is bitingly cold outside, it only seems cozy inside with my big mug of hot tea, warm sweaters and lovely music playing around the house!
In a hectic lifestyle, such peaceful moments come but seldom and I am trying to get maximum enjoyment out of it all.It makes me rethink about simplifying my life so that peaceful moments are the norm !What say you ?
In Lunch news , we had another good week.




On Monday, LG7 took noodles in a tomato and vegetable sauce, with apple slices and dried fruits and nuts.

 
On Tuesday, the lunchbox contained toasted peanut butter banana sandwiches, carrot sticks, mixed berries and a homemade blueberry muffin. 

 
On Wednesday, LG7 requested Mac and Cheese and got it. In addition, he took apple slices and a mini muffin.

 
On Thursday, lunch consisted of cheese toasts, strawberries and steamed broccoli.



 
On Friday, I packed pita pizzas, leftover potato fry, berries and a chocolate chip cookie for a treat.

Keep warm and work on increasing the peaceful moments in your life !